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Pro bike: Fabian Cancellara's Trek Speed Concept Tour de France

Pro bike: Fabian Cancellara's Trek Speed Concept Tour de France

It's a woefully overused cliché but it's still utterly appropriate: Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Speed Concept looks fast standing still - and thankfully Spartacus has the legs and lungs to back it up

James Huang/BikeRadar

It's almost a shame that there's a drivetrain on the bike as it looks remarkably clean from this side

James Huang/BikeRadar

The sword and dice on the stem distract your eyes from the cutout that provides access to the Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 control box button

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara (Leopard-Trek) keeps his hands close together but his elbows surprisingly far apart - probably to gain power at the cost of a little more drag

James Huang/BikeRadar

Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 time trial componentry allows Fabian Cancellara (Leopard-Trek) to shift from either the base bar or the extensions

James Huang/BikeRadar

Trek look to have done a pretty good job of incorporating lots of adjustability into the Speed Concept cockpit

James Huang/BikeRadar

Leopard-Trek team mechanics had to do some custom extension work for Fabian Cancellara's Trek Speed Concept

James Huang/BikeRadar

Trek are able to use an unusually narrow head tube since the steerer is captured by the fork at both ends

James Huang/BikeRadar

The head tube on the Trek Speed Concept is amazingly narrow, with especially little cartridge bearings used up top

Moving the rear brake down into the chainstays leaves the rear end of the bike looking especially clean and uncluttered

James Huang/BikeRadar

The graphics on Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Speed Concept aren't just decals - they're raised appliques that add a bit of texture to the frame

James Huang/BikeRadar

The rear wheel is covered with a big 'Bontrager' decal but underneath is a Lightweight disc

James Huang/BikeRadar

The rear brake is neatly tucked away underneath the bottom bracket. Battery placement could maybe be improved a bit, though, in terms of aerodynamics. This area creates some headaches for the team mechanics, who have to remove all of this stuff in order to mount the bike on a repair stand

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara (Leopard-Trek) has been using Shimano's Yumeya hop-up bits for some time now. Apparently he's a fan of gold

Leopard-Trek team mechanics were still building up Fabian Cancellara's spare time trial bike a day before Stage 1. Unfortunately for them, it's anything but a straightforward job

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL road bike has the same 'Spartacus' theme as his time trial machine but with additional baby-blue accents

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

It's a woefully overused cliché but it's still utterly appropriate: Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Speed Concept looks fast standing still - and thankfully Spartacus has the legs and lungs to back it up

James Huang/BikeRadar

It's almost a shame that there's a drivetrain on the bike as it looks remarkably clean from this side

James Huang/BikeRadar

The sword and dice on the stem distract your eyes from the cutout that provides access to the Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 control box button

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara (Leopard-Trek) keeps his hands close together but his elbows surprisingly far apart - probably to gain power at the cost of a little more drag

James Huang/BikeRadar

Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 time trial componentry allows Fabian Cancellara (Leopard-Trek) to shift from either the base bar or the extensions

James Huang/BikeRadar

Trek look to have done a pretty good job of incorporating lots of adjustability into the Speed Concept cockpit

James Huang/BikeRadar

Leopard-Trek team mechanics had to do some custom extension work for Fabian Cancellara's Trek Speed Concept

James Huang/BikeRadar

Trek are able to use an unusually narrow head tube since the steerer is captured by the fork at both ends

James Huang/BikeRadar

The head tube on the Trek Speed Concept is amazingly narrow, with especially little cartridge bearings used up top

Moving the rear brake down into the chainstays leaves the rear end of the bike looking especially clean and uncluttered

James Huang/BikeRadar

The graphics on Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Speed Concept aren't just decals - they're raised appliques that add a bit of texture to the frame

James Huang/BikeRadar

The rear wheel is covered with a big 'Bontrager' decal but underneath is a Lightweight disc

James Huang/BikeRadar

The rear brake is neatly tucked away underneath the bottom bracket. Battery placement could maybe be improved a bit, though, in terms of aerodynamics. This area creates some headaches for the team mechanics, who have to remove all of this stuff in order to mount the bike on a repair stand

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara (Leopard-Trek) has been using Shimano's Yumeya hop-up bits for some time now. Apparently he's a fan of gold

Leopard-Trek team mechanics were still building up Fabian Cancellara's spare time trial bike a day before Stage 1. Unfortunately for them, it's anything but a straightforward job

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL road bike has the same 'Spartacus' theme as his time trial machine but with additional baby-blue accents

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Fabian Cancellara's (Leopard-Trek) Trek Madone 6.9 SSL

James Huang/BikeRadar

Image 1 of 42

Leopard-Trek strongman Fabian Cancellara was perhaps the most pampered rider in this year's Tour de France – at least in terms of equipment – with a custom designed and finished Trek Madone 6.9 SSL road bike and Speed Concept time trial bike designed in collaboration with graphic artist Joshua M Smith (aka "Hydro74").

While the bikes are very different, both share a similarly menacing theme, with a matte black base and an array of grey graphics playing off of Cancellara's "Spartacus" moniker. Dark grey carved floral patterns are littered throughout the frame (and the rear disc wheel in the case of the time trial bike) but the dominant visual features are the big Spartan helmets on the head tube and top tube, the threatening sword and lucky dice plastered on the stem, and a giant "Spartacus" logo on the top tube.

The broad and flat top tube leaves plenty of room for eye-catching graphics on Fabian Cancellara's custom Trek Speed Concept

Cancellara's road bike is dressed up even further, with baby blue accents on the frame, headset spacers and even the custom tire labels from Schwalbe, and both bikes receive the full Yumeya treatment from Shimano, with gold anodized titanium bolts and even cable end caps.

As for the equipment itself, Trek have pulled out the stops for Leopard-Trek's time trial wizard with their innovative Speed Concept. Rather than use true airfoil sections, as was commonly done in the past, Trek instead use Kamm tail truncated airfoils. These supposedly mimic the aerodynamic performance of sections much deeper than those allowed by the UCI but with aspect ratios that are structurally better suited for weight and stiffness.

The proprietary brakes are fully integrated into the external-steerer fork crown and chainstays, the bar and stem present noticeably less frontal area than conventional setups, and the cabling is almost entirely internal from end to end for an ultra-clean surface throughout. Save for the proprietary bits and the SRM crankset, Shimano provide most of the rest of the running gear in the form of their Dura-Ace Di2 electronic group, which is especially useful in this configuration with its multiple shift button locations.

On the day we spotted it, Cancellara's Speed Concept was fitted with a Carbonsports Lightweight carbon rear disc and Bontrager's new Aeolus 5 50mm-deep, wide-profile carbon tubular wheel up front. Finishing bits include Speedplay Zero Stainless pedals, an SRM Power Control 7 computer, and a single Bontrager Speed Bottle (which supposedly improves aerodynamics over not having one mounted).

The rear wheel is covered with a big 'Bontrager' decal but underneath is a Lightweight disc

Position-wise, Cancellara's setup is notable for its emphasis on power. True, his position is plenty aerodynamic but the custom Prologo Nago Evo TTR saddle is pushed roughly 10mm further back than minimum UCI guidelines and the armrest pads are set relatively wide – especially when compared to someone like Garmin-Cervélo's David Zabriskie. Total weight as pictured is 8.41kg (18.54lb).

Save for the custom finish and Yumeya accents, Cancellara's Trek Madone is essentially standard team-issue with two major exceptions: a SRAM PG-1070 cassette in lieu of the Shimano Dura-Ace equivalent (SRAM team liaison Alex Wassmann says he just likes the 11-26T ratio) and while the rest of Leopard-Trek happily use Di2 on their road bikes, the four-time time trial world champion instead sticks with the mechanical Dura-Ace group.

Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 time trial componentry allows Cancellara to shift from either the base bar or the extensions

This is something we initially noticed back at the cobbled spring classics – along with a few other notable riders. Team spokesman Tim Vanderjeugd insists: "It's a simply a matter of preference. Shimano offer the team the choice to use their components of choice. Fabian chooses to use mechanical Dura-Ace on his road bike simple because he prefers the feel. On the TT bike the Di2 offers a distinct advantage with multiple shift points, and Fabian prefers to take advantage of that."